‘Pandemic of Silence’ Descends as Moscow Censorship Keeps Doctors from Talking

Paul Goble

            Staunton, November 29 – Many journalists expected that covering the coronavirus pandemic would be easy because it was a story everyone was interested in and because so many medical personnel were involved and could talk about it, MBC journalists say (mbk-news.appspot.com/sences/pandemiya-molchaniya/).

            But things haven’t worked out that way because officials using threats of dismissal or worse or engaging in direct censorship have spread “a pandemic of silence” over the rapidly spreading disease, limiting coverage and giving rise to rumors few are in a position to counter effectively.

            As a result of this second “pandemic,” many journalists who had wanted to cover the coronavirus are turning to other things, yet another way in which official pressure on doctors and nurses not to talk to the media is leading to fewer and less intriguing stories about the coronavirus.

            One story that nonetheless appears every day is the government’s report of how many new cases and deaths from the coronavirus have occurred over the previous 24 hours. Today, the authorities reported registering 26,683 new cases of infection and 459 new deaths, bringing those tolls to 2,269,316 and 39,527 respectively (t.me/COVID2019_official/2078).

            Officials in the regions continue to release updates on the pandemic in their areas. These permit the conclusion that the pandemic is still getting worse in far more places than it is getting better and that restrictions on the population are increasing rather than being lifted (regnum.ru/news/society/3122025.html).

            Russian medical experts say that between 20 and 45 percent of the Russian population has been exposed to the virus, although the percentage who have actually become ill and developed antibodies is lower. Only the vaccine will boost the share of the population truly immune, they suggest (rbc.ru/society/29/11/2020/5fc3db789a7947b0f812dbc3 and ura.news/news/1052460822).

            Only 19 percent of Russian companies say they will organize vaccination programs for their workers. Most of these are firms which already have flu immunization programs in place. But this pattern is likely to slow any vaccination program the government sets up (newsru.com/russia/29nov2020/tovaccinate.html).

            Commentators are pointing out both that the current medicine distribution system is inadequate and that the government’s recommendations on how to stay well are in many cases misleading or simply wrong (echo.msk.ru/blog/moniava/2749892-echo/ and theins.ru/opinions/vasilii-vlasov/237249).

            On the economic front, while overall inflation remains relatively low, prices for basic goods in greatest supply are rising fast, the result of supply difficulties and price gouging (ria.ru/20201127/bakaleya-1586548747.html).

            Meanwhile, in other pandemic-related developments in Russia today,

·         A new word has entered the Russian language – khamkovid – to refer to those irresponsible citizens who cast doubt on the recommended means of health security during the pandemic (echo.msk.ru/blog/govorimporusski/2749896-echo/).

·         Academician Vladimir Fortov, the former president of the Russian Academy of Sciences, has died from the coronavirus (interfax.ru/russia/739128).

·         The pandemic has led urban Russians to take a new interest in city parks and green spaces and prompted city planners to call for adding more space for these amenities as cities expand (vtimes.io/2020/11/29/pereustroistvo-goroda-a1690).